Woodworking facility

ABSTRACT

The invention pertains to a woodworking facility with a workpiece support ( 8 ) and a belt or chain arrangement for registering the movement of a workpiece ( 7 ) that lies on the workpiece support ( 8 ) and is transported thereon in order to be processed, wherein the belt or chain arrangement comprises a belt ( 1 ) or chain that is guided over at least two deflection pulleys ( 2, 3 ) and designed for contacting the workpiece ( 7 ), and wherein said belt or chain can be pressed against the workpiece ( 7 ) transverse to the moving direction of the belt ( 1 ) or the chain by means of a pressing device ( 10 ) assigned to the belt ( 1 ) or the chain, with the pressing device ( 10 ) comprising several pressing elements ( 11 ) that are moved together with the belt ( 1 ) or the chain in the moving direction thereof.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to German PatentApplication No. 20 2011 105 077.0 filed Aug. 27, 2011, the entirecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention pertains to a woodworking facility.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

DE 202 03 488 U1 discloses a woodworking facility in which the movementof the workpiece is registered by means of a belt arrangement with abelt or band that is guided over deflection pulleys. In this case, ameasuring belt is guided over several separate pulleys parallel to adriving band that is intended for the transport of the workpieces. Flatspring-loaded pressing rails are arranged on the rear side of themeasuring belt toward the workpiece side. The measuring belt is pressedagainst the workpiece from inside by means of the spring-loaded pressingrails. However, since the measuring belt is moved along the stationarypressing rails, the measuring belt is subjected to significant stressdue to the relative movement between the measuring belt and thespring-loaded pressing rails and the thusly caused friction such thatrapid wear of the measuring belt and consequently slippage thereof mayoccur.

The invention is based on the objective of developing a woodworkingfacility of the initially cited type that makes it possible torespectively press the belt or the chain against the workpiece to bemoved in a slip-free fashion with the least friction possible.

This objective is attained with a woodworking facility with thecharacteristics, practical enhancements, and advantageous embodiments inaccordance with the disclosure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In the inventive woodworking facility, the pressing device featuresseveral pressing elements that are moved together with the belt or thechain in the moving direction thereof. Since the pressing elements movewith the belt or the chain, the belt or the chain can be respectivelypressed against the workpiece in order to produce a slip-free connectiontherewith, namely without any sliding friction occurring between thepressing elements and the belt or the chain. In this way, it ispossible, e.g., to determine the movement of the workpiece in a preciseand slip-free fashion.

In a particularly practical embodiment of the invention, the pressingelements are interconnected into an endless chain and guided over atleast two pocket wheels. The two pocket wheels lie in one plane andpreferably are arranged in a plane between two upper deflection pulleysof the belt in such a way that the pressing elements come in contactwith the inner side of the belt section extending between the twodeflection pulleys. In an advantageous embodiment, the pressing elementsmay be interconnected, e.g., by means of link plates.

The pressing elements are preferably pressed against the inner side ofthe belt by means of a pressure plate. The pressure plate may bearranged between the pocket wheels and realized such that the pressingelements are pressed against the inner side of the belt when they passover the pressure plate and thusly press the belt, e.g., against theunderside of a workpiece. The pressure plate may be realized in aramp-shaped fashion for this purpose. The pressure plate may also bepivotable about a horizontal axis. In this way, the pressing elementscan also be adequately pressed against irregular workpieces.

In order to achieve the least friction possible between the pressingelements and the pressure plate, rotatably supported rollers may bearranged on the pressing elements or on the connecting elements betweenthe pressing elements in order to realize the support on the pressureplate.

In a particularly practical embodiment, the belt is guided over twodeflection pulleys that are arranged in one plane and over a thirddeflection pulley, wherein the third deflection pulley may be arrangedon the free end of a pivotably supported motion link.

The deflection pulleys and the pressing device may be arranged on asupport and vertically moved by means of this support. This makes itpossible to realize an adjustment against the workpiece.

The above-described belt or chain arrangement can preferably be used forregistering the movement of a workpiece in a board processing facility,a joinery facility or a similar woodworking facility. For this purpose,the belt or the chain is pressed, e.g., against the underside of aworkpiece that is moved in the longitudinal direction on a workpiecesupport by means of the pressing elements that move with the belt or thechain. A sensor or another suitable device may be arranged on at leastone of the pulleys of the belt in order to register its rotationalmovement. The movement of the workpiece therefore can be registered andmeasured in a slip-free fashion by registering the rotational movementof the pulley that is driven by the workpiece via the belt or a chain.However, the movement of the belt or the chain can also be directlyregistered with other suitable measuring devices. It would also bepossible, e.g., to register the number of teeth of a toothed belt movingpast a suitable detector and to use this number for the directmeasurement of the belt movement. However, other measuring devices wouldalso be suitable for registering the belt or chain movement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the present invention, and theattendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readilyunderstood by reference to the following detailed description whenconsidered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inventive belt arrangement;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the belt arrangement according to FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a pressing element; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a pressing element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As required, detailed embodiments are disclosed herein; however, it isto be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples andthat the systems and methods described below can be embodied in variousforms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosedherein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis forthe claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in theart to variously employ the present subject matter in virtually anyappropriately detailed structure and function. Further, the terms andphrases used herein are not intended to be limiting, but rather, toprovide an understandable description of the concepts.

The terms “a” or “an”, as used herein, are defined as one or more thanone. The term plurality, as used herein, is defined as two or more thantwo. The term another, as used herein, is defined as at least a secondor more. The terms “including” and “having,” as used herein, are definedas comprising (i.e., open language). The term “coupled,” as used herein,is defined as “connected,” although not necessarily directly, and notnecessarily mechanically.

The belt arrangement illustrated in the form of different views in FIGS.1 and 2 comprises a belt 1 that is realized in the form of an endlesstoothed belt in this case and guided over two upper deflection pulleys 2and 3 that lie in one plane, as well as over a lower deflection pulley 4that is arranged underneath the two deflection pulleys 2 and 3. The twoupper deflection pulleys 2 and 3 are rotatably supported on a supportingrail 5 while the lower deflection pulley 4 is rotatably supported on thefree end of a motion link 6 that is pivotably arranged on the supportingrail 5. The motion link 6 may be prestressed by means of a not-shownspring or pressed downward due to its own weight in order to guide thebelt 1 in a tensioned fashion.

The upper deflection pulleys 2 and 3, as well as the lower deflectionpulley 4, are realized in the form of toothed pulleys that canpositively engage with the belt 1 in the form of an endless toothedbelt. The belt arrangement is realized in such a way that the region orsection of the belt 1 extending between the two upper deflection pulleys2 and 3 at least partially contacts the underside of a workpiece 7 thatis schematically illustrated in FIG. 2 with its outer side. Theworkpiece 7 in the form of, e.g., a wooden beam, a wooden board or thelike lies on a roller conveyor that is schematically indicated withtransport rollers or another suitable workpiece support 8 of a boardprocessing facility or a similar woodworking facility and can betransported along the workpiece support 8 by means of a not-showntransport device in order to be processed. During the movement of theworkpiece 7 in the direction of its longitudinal axis, the belt 1 isdriven due to its frictional engagement with the underside of theworkpiece 7 and can be used for registering the movement of theworkpiece 7.

In the exemplary embodiment shown, the belt arrangement therefore formspart of a measuring device for registering the movement of the component7 that is moved in the longitudinal direction, wherein the lowerdeflection pulley 4 is connected to a rotary encoder or another suitablesensor 9 for registering the rotational movement of the deflectionpulley 4. The movement of the workpiece 7 can be registered byregistering the rotational movement of the deflection pulley 4 that isdriven by the workpiece 7 via the belt 1. The sensor 9 could also bearranged on the other deflection pulleys 2 and 3.

In order to drive the belt 1 in a largely slip-free fashion during themovement of the workpiece 7, the belt 1 is pressed against the workpiece7 by a pressing device 10. The pressing device 10 comprises severalpressing elements 11 that are moved together with the belt 1 in thetransport direction thereof and form part of an endless chain that isguided around two pocket wheels 12 and 13 in the embodiment shown. Thepocket wheels 12 and 13 are realized in the form of toothed wheels inthe embodiment shown.

The pressing elements 11 are illustrated separately in FIGS. 3 and 4 andconsist of a U-shaped base body with an upper pressing section 14 andtwo downwardly protruding limbs 15, wherein two pins 16 extend throughsaid limbs and feature rotatably supported rollers 17 on both sides inorder to realize the support on the pressure plate 18 illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2. The rollers 17 are held by an outer link plate 19 seatedon the ends of the pins 16. The pressing elements 11 are interconnectedinto the endless chain that is guided over the pocket wheels 12 and 13by means of inner link plates 20 illustrated in FIG. 3.

Due to the rollers 17 that are arranged on the pins 16 to both sides ofthe pressing element 11, the pressing elements 11 glide on the pressureplate 18 with the least friction and wear possible. The pressure plate18 arranged between the pocket wheels 12 and 13 is realized in such away that the pressing elements 11 are pressed against the belt 1 whenthey pass over the pressure plate 18 and thusly press the belt againstthe underside of the workpiece 7. For this purpose, the pressure plate18 is realized in a ramp-shaped fashion with a front ramp surface 21that obliquely ascends toward the pressing elements 11 in the movingdirection of the pressing elements 11 and an obliquely descending rearramp surface 22.

In the embodiment shown, the above-described belt arrangement is usedfor measuring the movement of a workpiece in a board processing facilityor a similar woodworking facility. The belt arrangement is integratedinto a transport bed or another workpiece support of the woodworkingfacility in such a way that the upper section of the belt 1 comes incontact with, e.g., the underside of the workpiece 7 that lies on thetransport bed and is transported in the longitudinal direction. The beltnaturally may also come in contact with other lateral surfaces of theworkpiece 7. When the workpiece 7 is moved in the longitudinal directionby means of a not-shown transport device, the belt 1 pressed against theunderside of the workpiece 7 by the pressing elements 11 is driven dueto this frictional engagement and transmits its movement to thedeflection pulley 4, on which the sensor 9 for registering therotational movement of the deflection pulley 4 is arranged. In this way,the movement of the workpiece can be registered and measured. Since thepressing elements 11 are moved together with the belt 1 and no relativemovement takes place between the pressing elements 11 and the belt 1, nosliding friction occurs between the pressing elements 11 and the belt 1.

The above-described belt arrangement is not limited to the extensivelyelucidated application. For example, the belt arrangement could also beused for transporting a workpiece when one or more of the pulleys aredriven. The movement of the workpiece can also be measured in this case.Instead of using the belt 1, it would furthermore be possible to use achain or similar traction elements that are pressed against theworkpiece 7 by means of the above-described pressing device 10 andconnected to the workpiece 7 in a slip-free fashion by means of suitablefrictionally or positively engaging elements.

All references cited herein are expressly incorporated by reference intheir entirety. In addition, unless mention was made above to thecontrary, it should be noted that all of the accompanying drawings arenot to scale. There are many different features to the present inventionand it is contemplated that these features may be used together orseparately. Thus, the invention should not be limited to any particularcombination of features or to a particular application of the invention.Further, it should be understood that variations and modificationswithin the spirit and scope of the invention might occur to thoseskilled in the art to which the invention pertains. Accordingly, allexpedient modifications readily attainable by one versed in the art fromthe disclosure set forth herein that are within the scope and spirit ofthe present invention are to be included as further embodiments of thepresent invention.

1. A woodworking facility with a workpiece support (8) and a belt orchain arrangement for registering the movement of a workpiece (7) thatlies on the workpiece support (8) and is transported thereon in order tobe processed, wherein the belt or chain arrangement comprises a belt (1)or chain that is guided over at least two deflection pulleys (2, 3) anddesigned for contacting the workpiece (7), and wherein said belt orchain can be pressed against the workpiece (7) transverse to the movingdirection of the belt (1) or the chain by means of a pressing device(10) assigned to the belt (1) or the chain, wherein the pressing device(10) comprises several pressing elements (11) that are moved togetherwith the belt (1) or the chain in the moving direction thereof.
 2. Thewoodworking facility according to claim 1, wherein the pressing elements(11) are interconnected into an endless chain and guided over at leasttwo pocket wheels (12, 13).
 3. The woodworking facility according toclaim 2, wherein the pocket wheels (12, 13) are arranged between thedeflection pulleys (2, 3) of the belt (1).
 4. The woodworking facilityaccording to claim 1, wherein the pressing elements (11) areinterconnected by means of link plates (20).
 5. The woodworking facilityaccording to claim 1, wherein the pressing elements (11) are pressedagainst the inner side of the belt (1) by means of a pressure plate(18).
 6. The woodworking facility according to claim 1, whereinrotatably supported rollers (17) are arranged on the pressing elements(11).
 7. The woodworking facility according to claim 6, wherein thepressing elements (11) comprise a U-shaped base body with an upperpressing section (14) and two downwardly protruding limbs (15), whereintwo pins (16) extend through said limbs and feature rotatably supportedrollers (17) on both sides.
 8. The woodworking facility according toclaim 1, wherein the belt or the chain is guided over two deflectionpulleys (2, 3) that are arranged in one plane and over a thirddeflection pulley (4).
 9. The woodworking facility according to claim 8,wherein the third deflection pulley (4) is arranged on the free end of apivotably supported motion link (6).
 10. The woodworking facilityaccording to claim 1, wherein a sensor (9) is arranged on at least oneof the deflection pulleys (4) in order to register the rotationalmovement of the deflection pulley (4).
 11. The woodworking facilityaccording to claim 1, wherein a sensor is arranged on the belt (1) orthe chain in order to register the movement of the belt (1) or thechain.
 12. The woodworking facility according to claim 5, wherein thepressure plate (18) can be pivoted about a horizontal axis.
 13. Thewoodworking facility according to claim 1, wherein the deflectionpulleys (2, 3) and the pressing device (10) are arranged on a support(5).
 14. The woodworking facility according to claim 13, wherein thesupport (5) is vertically movable.